Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

No, they won't be going out of business, but they will be experiencing the long-term effects of the "Ill-Will" they have now created within thousands of older, smaller sellers that had (past tense?) been with them for years, coupled with dramatically increased competition, especially within niche markets, that is cheaper, easier, and offers better exposure (think "working search engines"). To those cheerleaders that think they are too big to fail, they - eBay - have done it before...in China, no less. Quote from the linked article:

"eBay acquired EachNet.com, the largest C2C website, and spent a few hundred million dollars on marketing, successfully turned its market share from 90+% to less than 10%, and then sold it to Tom Online."

I do believe we are seeing - and experiencing - a dratically different eBay (which was predicted by JD), and the effects are echoed every day here on these boards. The increase in profit margins over the last two years has largely been the result of fee restructurings, not increased volume, especially by adding the 10% FVF to shipping, which in essence doubled the income received from most smaller dealers, and again this year with the FVF ratio restructuring. The STR says it all, with some exceptions. Go to any seller, click on their items for sale, then on their sold items, and review the STR. The averages are dismal. Yes, there are exceptions but they are far and few between.

Several similar Corporate transitions, and the end results, come to mind. AOL went from THE market leader to playing catchup in 18 months, largely sparked by a dramatic shift in internet access pricing across the board. They refused to recognize the severity of it and lost MAJOR market share almost overnight. Remember Netflix' price increases? They haven't recovered either...but Redbox is exploding.

Research the history of IBM, of Apple before they brought Jobs back, of Chrysler in the 80s, and HP and Dell now. History is full of lessons to be learned from companies that deviated from their historical corporate niches.

The prior poster hit the nail on the head with the short post, and I will second the "Spot On". The search engine is broken. If they can't find you, they can't buy from you. The increased fees have resulted in experienced sellers raising their prices to try and maintain profit margins required to stay in business, and the result is the same items are now sold less expensively on competing venues. And the rules and regulations now rival the federal government, or close to it. Elsewhere they are simpler, and friendlier.

Polar Bear...save your response and cheerleading for those that don't know who you are. Your Used Auto Parts is a business that thrives in recessions and we've been in one of the worst in a century, so your business is the exception, not the norm. It should be thriving.

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

My sales have dropped by over 2000 USD per month. I have no idea what is going on . I am very worried as ebay is the only means of income. Could it be that my items are not being promoted as I do not have a ebay store??

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

They must have figured this out by now also, but with all the money sunk into this I doubt it will ever be admitted. The problem? This much ballyhooed "Can't See Me" search engine is simply disfunctional. Search for something - anything - within the Ebay system and its "luck of the draw" what comes up. Change a word, abbreviate something, spell out a number, and a whole new search comes up. Use Google search to find what you want, and the Ebay Listing will show right at the top of the page, but click on it and what you wanted to see goes away and - BING! - you are right back lost in the "Can't See Me" Ebay search engine. If this was named "Alice in Wonderland", this would be the Rabbit Hole.

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

The answer is pretty simple, universal. There are almost 220,000,000 listings on the site today. Yes, there is back-to-school and weather is too hot and economy not good and the site went down several hours, but basically the overwhelming number of listings and the underwhelming number of buyers are the problem. eBay favors the big brand megasellers and gives them top placement in search at all times. Other sellers must wait their turn to get that kind of placement for a short time.

Also, viewing your listings, there are only 3 items showing and two items are very expensive items so the reason there might be the economy. When I google the title of your listing, several organs show up, one of which is selling for almost $400 less than yours (and has a picture showing on google) for the same item.

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

I have been doing this for almost 14 years. I have never really been full-time at this. However my sales are through the roof. Have been for over a year and a half. Had a $17,000 month in February. Averaging about $15k a month. I am a top rated, gold level power seller.

My profit margins are huge. When you buy something for $4.00 and it sells for $250, you make money. Most of what I sell I pay less than $2.00 for but depending on what it is, it can sell for $100+. Average selling price is about $40 for a $2.00 item.

I would be interested in knowing what type items you are selling. Are they new wholesale items or hand picked collectables from auctions, estates and garage sales. The profit margin you state is extremely high and your monthly sales would indicate you must be either selling high dollar items or the volume is such that you are buying collectables by the cargo container full.

I'm not looking for your trade secret, but some insight could prove helpful.

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

By your silly comments you appear to be more of an eBay shill who works for ebay rather than a legitimate seller.You have no items for sale and are saying things that are simple untrue.

Most sellers have seen their sales plummeting and there is a strong sense that it has to do more with eBay's server issues, changing the search engine and dropping Google search more than anything else.

Inuk you seem to be simply an instigator here to belittle people and make snide remarks. So here I am bash me and tell me my comments are silly and that I'm a shill and a liar. Posting ID Only 2013 - AKA - Uppercut Knives.

By the way shill bidding is illegal on ebay and anyone doing so won't last 16 years.

So do take a look at my listings, go back and take a look at my history, look at my power seller status, look at my 99.9% positive feedback, be sure to take an hour and read the feedback and see how I take care of my customers.

THEN .... come back with something positive that this forum can use to help the ones who are struggling. Or just go away.

PS. Used car parts is only a decent business because of the economical needs of people struggling to make ends meet by keeping their cars running on used parts. So were all happy that you can prance around the boards and brag about how good your business is and how well you are doing. Fortunatly yours is one of the few businesses that are flourishing.

Re: POOR 2013 Sales down overall. WHY ???

EBay just restricted my selling because they supposedly linked me to the activity of another account, namely my ex-husband's. Online chat just gave me clichéd lines and a link and ended the chat abruptly.

I ended the item and listed it on amazon.co.uk Marketplace.

netpad wrote:I shop at amazon all the time now. prime member two day shipping always for free. You should try to sell there

I'll by more on there too as they are now excellent for accessories.

Am I mad or do I get the feeling eBay is not listening to customers, has become a nameless bureaucracy and is insensitive to loyal customers from both the buying and selling segments?